TDA POKER TOURNAMENT RULES & RECOMMENDED PROCEDURES > Official Poker TDA Recommended Procedures, Latest Version

Dealers who talk too much

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K-Lo:
I'm not sure where else to put this posting, but I need to vent... One of my biggest pet peeves is having to deal with dealers (not only as a TD but also as a player) that just can't help being Chatty Cathys at the table.  Whether is it overcalling the action, commenting on plays, making jokes that are really not that funny, or whatever, it drives me crazy.  And although I can deal with the occasional banter, some dealers seem truly incapable of controlling themselves.  

I'm sure Nick and others who also train dealers have something to say about this... for me, one of the cardinal rules of dealing is restraining from unnecssary chatter.  The obvious solution is simply to warn the dealer and then fire him, I suppose.  But I'm curious to know whether anyone has had similar problems with overly chatty dealers and how you've dealt with it.  Or perhaps I should be less sensitive about it.

/rant

Nick C:
K-Lo,
 You are correct when you say that I would have something to say about over talkative dealers. I don't know how some of them can even consentrate on what they are doing. I very rarely carry on conversation with players when dealing and I train my dealers to be silent and only "call the game." There might be a reason some dealers talk as much as they do. A few years ago I was training dealers at a school in Buffalo New York and we were visited by corporate supervisors from Wheeling Island in West Virginia who were looking for dealers. I was complimented on the dealers they auditioned. I was told that they were the best collective group that they had seen and actually hired several from our school. Are you ready for this, one of the supervisors said that he would like to see more conversation from my dealers but other than that, they were real good! I don't know where in the hell they get that from? possibly because some came from casinos that had carnival games and they were not very experienced when it came to poker.
 I've been known to wake-up a few players that were nodding-off when I would announce a "RAISE!" Being loud is okay, as long as you're talking about the action at hand.
I would not tolerate excessive conversation from any dealer. I think it was about 30 years ago when dealing at the "Ten Deuce Club" where the old "Dummy-up and Deal" philosophy was the rule of thumb. Some things should never change.

JasperToo:
I think it is actually a really fine line.  I think what the dealer recruiter was looking for was that dealer that had the ability to carry on a casual conversation about the football game, or regional interests for visiting players.  Able to toss out an occasional funny and generally engage the clientele on something more than a 'hello, it's your turn to act".  I do say that they should NEVER have anything to say about anybody's play and inappropriate jokes, of course.

I know some of the best dealers have something to say to most customers, can carry on a conversation if they need to, still have the highest per hour hand rate and never let the game lag.

K-Lo I would say that if there talking interferes with the pace of the game or you actually get an annoyed customer that you warn and terminate.  Otherwise, chillax.

Nick C:
Jasper,
 The dealers that you speak of are "few and far between." I will never encourage conversation from dealers. There's too much for them to do and total concentration is required.
If your dealers can control the game, and entertain the players, without annoying the guy that just got his aces' cracked...then I guess you can stick with the old philosophy of "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!"
 

Spence:
As the casino industry has evolved it has become more important for the dealer to be an entertainer. This is the truth for most table games. Poker does not really fall into that category. I find that management at my facility look at it as the players having a good time. I don't think they realize that poker players do not need to be entertained to keep them happy and in their seats. We need speed to make dollars in poker. I have a particularly chatty dealer in my room and she has earned herself a reputation as a fantastic blackjack dealer because she is a hoot to have deal to you. The poker players consider her a nightmare. We've coached her to shut up and deal in the poker room but so many of our clients are table games players as well. Unfortunately I am at my wits end over the issue and have washed my hands of it. No one else seems to see that it is costing us money and affecting most players’ enjoyment of the room. Chatty dealers need to be dealt with harshly in most circumstances.

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